


On the Same Side

by rillalicious



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Age Difference, Community: hp_nextgen_fest, Cross-Generation Relationship, Dragons, HP Next Gen Fest 2018, Harry Potter Next Generation, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Post-Hogwarts, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-08
Updated: 2018-11-08
Packaged: 2019-08-10 23:13:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16464152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rillalicious/pseuds/rillalicious
Summary: Teddy is heading to Romania to protest a proposed anti-dragon law. He finds an interesting ally there.





	On the Same Side

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much, S, for the beta! I hope you like what I did with your prompt, gracerene!

As the plane touched down in Otopeni, Teddy closed his eyes and clenched his stomach against the strange sensation of hitting the ground without any sense of control. He could have taken the Floo Network, or a Portkey, or even arrived by broom, but he'd wanted to avoid using magic in case the Ministry had any reason to track him. He opened his eyes and looked out the tiny window as the plane taxied around the terminal. 

Somewhere out here in Romania there was a werewolf colony, the one where his dad had spent some time before Teddy was born. He had heard that a good friend of his father's still lived there and in his weaker moments he was almost tempted to abandon his mission and hunt this fellow down, to see if maybe he remembered stories about Remus that Teddy hadn't heard yet. He'd exhausted the memories of everyone who had known his father back home, but Teddy was hungry for more. He didn't remember anything of his parents and he hung on every word of anyone who did. 

But Teddy wasn't here to investigate werewolf colonies. Not this time, anyway. This time he was here for the dragon preserve. 

He rose to his feet, ducking low to avoid hitting his head on the overhead bins, and followed the crowd down the aisle toward the exit of the plane. He stopped once, to help a woman juggling two small children who seemed to be spilling over with stuffed animals and bags of snacks and little flat screens with Muggle cartoons dancing across them. He pulled their small colorful suitcases from the overhead bins and handed them off. The mum smiled at him gratefully and ushered her children to the airbridge. One of the little children looked back and Teddy let a lock of hair fall over his eye, turning it to purple, then gold, then blue, then back again. The child gasped. 

The hotel room was small and clean, but it didn't much matter because Teddy was not going to be spending much time there at all. He flipped his suitcase open on the bed and activated the undetectable extension charm. All of his camping gear spread into view at once. That charm had been a lifesaver in getting him through Muggle customs. He didn't think he'd ever stop owing Hermione and her soft spot for righteous causes. No one else seemed to understand. He walked over to the window and looked down on Bucharest.

Tomorrow night he'd likely be out in the cold, possibly in peril, if Charlie Weasley didn't want to listen to him. After that, he might end up with a criminal record, and his gran would have fits over it. Teddy's stomach rumbled and he realized he hadn't eaten since that last little bag of pretzels on the plane this afternoon. He thought about the dehydrated meals in his backpack. _Fuck it_ , he thought. This kind of indulgence may have gone against everything his organization stood for, but he had no idea what tomorrow was going to bring; tonight he was going to order room service. 

~*~*~

Charlie had just finished sealing off the south end of the fledgling pen with a complicated spell when he saw Annie approaching. She waved one hand over her head to catch his attention and he rose to his feet from the spot where he'd been kneeling in the grass. 

"Were you missing me too much to wait an hour until dinner?" he said, brushing off his knees with one hand as he walked toward her. 

"You wish," said Annie. "We've got a problem. Anti-dragon law protester at the front gates." 

"This is why you're my favorite. Straight to the point. Who wants to bother with small talk? Like actual people?" He snorted. 

"I'm your favorite because I call you on your shit and my brother ships straight to you from his distillery in Lexington," she said, giving him the sly, crooked smile that warned him it might be a good idea to ease up on the wisecracks. " _And_ because I can rip your jugular out on the full moon if you decide to pick a different favorite. Now focus, Weasley. Front gates. Protester. Problem." 

Charlie shook his head and pulled off his dragonhide gloves, tucking them in his back pocket. "I always forget how mean Americans can be. Alright, so what's the problem? Signs bigger than regulation? Did they bring fireworks again?"

"He chained himself to the front gates."

"He?" said Charlie. "There's just one?" 

"Just one, but he's a determined little asshole," Annie said. 

"Did you tell him we're on the same side with this anti-dragon bollocks?"

"He only wanted to speak to you." 

"Me? By name?" 

"Yes, Weasley, by name. I know that your whole 'I like dragons more than people' thing leads you to believe that people don't have any idea who you are, but it's not hard to get the name of the guy who runs an entire dragon sanctuary."

Charlie shrugged. "It's just weird. Usually they don't care who they're protesting to." 

"Yeah, well, luckily for me, this one wants you, so it's not my problem." 

"This Christmas, I'm getting you a shirt with 'not my problem' written on it in big glittery letters. I should have known you'd be trouble when the first time I heard you say that was at your job interview."

"Also luckily for me," she said, "my boss has a soft spot for hiring queer werewolves."

"I've got a soft spot for hiring queer _dragon keepers_ ," he said. "There aren't that many of us. We need to stick together. That you're a werewolf only makes a difference one night a month and it works in our favor, especially with the poachers. The way I see it, I get the better end of this deal." 

"The way you're buttering me up, I'm getting a wicked suspicion you're putting me on night watch this weekend."

Charlie laughed. "Close. Thursday. But don't worry, I made sure you had the weekend free for that Bucharest pub crawl you like so much. Don't say I never did anything for you." 

Annie rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you're throwing me a real bone there, aren't you? Anyway, you should go take care of the kid at the gates before he actually hurts himself."

"He really chained himself to the main entrance? He knows we're wizards, right?" said Charlie. 

"He sure does. Not only is he chained, he's stuck there. With a sticking charm that no one at the main house could unstick."

"Huh," Charlie said. "That's new. Usually this sort is loud and not too bright. Alright, I'll go see if I can talk him down. If not, maybe he wants some face time with that grumpy old Fireball they just transferred in." He started down the walkway that would lead him to the front entrance of the reserve. 

"Charlie Weasley," Annie called after him. "No toasting the protesters! We don't need that kind of press with that anti-dragon law about to go before the Wizengamot. Charlie? Are you listening?"

Charlie grinned and waved her off over his head.

~*~*~

Teddy was glad that he had thought this out. He had chained himself to the main gates of the Romanian dragon preserve, but he'd managed to afix himself to the fence in such a way that he wasn't entirely uncomfortable. He reckoned he could spend another three or four hours here before his legs began to go numb. And by then, someone from the Ministry would have to listen. 

His arms were looped over the crossbar behind him, hands hanging by his waist, and it gave him just enough range of motion to work with. He worked his hand down into the pocket he could reach to pull out a pouch of dried fruit he'd brought with him, bending his neck to take the edge of the pouch in his teeth and tear it open, then he gave it a good shake, catching a mouthful of apple flakes and bits of apricot.

"Oh, now that's just unfair!" The booming voice startled Teddy and he dropped the pouch, looking up the path at Charlie Weasley sauntering toward him. 

"Not only are you blocking the entrance to my reserve, but you're going to torture yourself by eating twigs and leaves until we give into your demands?" Charlie said, and then the realization spread over his face. "Teddy Lupin. Your mum would've had my hide for this had she lived to see it. What the hell do you think you're doing?" 

Teddy cleared his throat. He hadn't expected the dressing down from _Charlie_ , though maybe he should have. The embarrassment burned his cheeks. 

"What do you mean what do I think I'm doing?" he said, gathering his dignity and furrowing his brow. "I'm taking a stand for something I believe in. The Ministry has to listen. I'll _make_ them." 

Charlie looked around at the mountain-lined landscape, rubbing the back of his neck, then back at Teddy. "Not out here you won't," he said. "What are you on about, anyway?" 

"The anti-dragon measures," Teddy said, frowning. Didn't Charlie at least _know_ about them? "I'm not going to let you put half this reserve down."

"The… what?" Charlie shook his head. "Oh, for fuck's sake, Teddy. Of course we're against the anti-dragon law nonsense. My second-in-command has been writing the Ministry daily. Hermione's been lobbying hard to get the Wizengamot to recommit the bill to buy us more time." 

He walked forward a few more steps, putting a hand on the chains that held Teddy to the gate. "We're on the same side, mate."

Teddy looked up at Charlie, who was a good head taller than Teddy like this, and let out a deflating breath. "Really?"

"I wouldn't lie about that," Charlie said, sincerely, and Teddy suddenly felt a little less embarrassed. "There's no bloody way I'd let the Ministry storm in here and start putting my dragons down because some wanker in London who's never even seen a dragon set some arbitrary safety standard that makes no fucking sense." His voice dropped just a little. "I promise you that, Teddy."

Teddy swallowed. "Okay," he said. "I believe you." 

"Good," Charlie said. "Now, you tell me how to break this sticking charm and get you down from there. We'll go back to my cabin and work on this thing. Together."

Teddy was a little bit ashamed of how fast and brightly he smiled at the thought of a comfortable place to stay.

~*~*~

Charlie thought maybe he should be more annoyed with Teddy than he was. But he'd always been fond of the kid, and as misguided as the attempt had been, at least he'd been trying to do something. Charlie wished more people had been trying to do something about this law. It wasn't like dragons affected the general population, though, and the average witch or wizard didn't seem to care very much if dragons did go extinct. Charlie cared. 

Annie did too. So passionately, in fact, that Charlie had hired her at the interview. While most of the other keepers were fond of dragons, many of them were here as seasonal employees, or using it as a pathway to Ministry employment. Hermione was helping from inside the Ministry, not because she felt particularly warmly toward dragons, but because she would always advocate against injustice. Now he could count Teddy amongst their allies. That was something. 

He carried two cups of tea into the sitting room and put one down in front of Teddy.

"So what exactly was the plan if I hadn't been on site when you stuck yourself to that gate?" he asked. 

Teddy shrugged. "Warming charms and snacks."

"Uh-huh." 

Teddy smiled a bashful smile and glanced away. "I would… I would've been fine."

"Annie would've made sure you were fine. But there's not always going to be an Annie around. Is this the first time you've ever done this sort of thing?" 

"I've been involved with the cause for a long time now." 

Charlie recognized the defensiveness in Teddy's voice and decided a different tactic would serve him best. 

"The cause, yeah? Tell me about it. What's it all about?" 

"The IDDC," Teddy said, and he looked a little suspicious, as if he knew what Charlie's reaction would be before he said it and was trying to head it off. "In Defence of Dark Creatures. We defend the rights of creatures on the Ministry's 'most dangerous' list." 

"That explains the interest in dragons," said Charlie, and his mouth was open to say more when Teddy interrupted.

"Dragons are my favorite. That's how I got this assignment. I know a lot about dragons. A _lot_. I've been learning about them since…" He trailed off, fixing Charlie with a look Charlie couldn't read. "I should shut up," he said suddenly. "I don't--I can't know as much about dragons as you do." 

"Probably not," said Charlie, "but that's nothing to be ashamed of. I had no idea you had an interest in dragons. I could fix you up with a summer internship, you know. You never said anything at the Burrow."

"Charlie." Teddy's voice was soft. "You're never there for more than an hour at a time. And when you are, _everyone_ wants to talk to you." 

Charlie looked down at his tea. "I'd make time for you, Teddy. If you needed something." Teddy wasn't wrong. Charlie hated going home, and only did it when he was absolutely obligated. When he was there, all he could think about was getting back to Romania.

"I don't need anything," Teddy said. "Really, Charlie. It's fine."

Charlie passed the cup from hand to hand. "Well, if you do need anything," he said, and Teddy shrugged again in response. 

It was only then that he realized at some time during all of these blurry visits home, Teddy had grown. He wasn't the kid Charlie had taken him for when he approached those gates. His shoulders were broad and his voice lower than Charlie remembered. There was well-tended stubble on his cheeks and chin. Charlie tried to remember how old he'd be now. Twenty-three? Twenty-four?

Teddy was practically family, and here Charlie was, unable to remember even the simplest things about him. Things Charlie should have known. He knew Harry and Ginny had practically raised Teddy, and now he was this handsome young man that Charlie barely recognized. Had he really been out of touch for so long?

"You still have that girl at home?" Charlie asked.

"Girl?" Teddy looked genuinely confused. "I don't--Oh! You mean _Victoire_? Your niece?" 

"That was Victoire?" 

"Yeah, Charlie, and it was eight years ago. I'm not… I'm gay." 

"Huh." Charlie nodded. "So am I."

Teddy's face went a little red and he looked down. "I know," he said. There were a few beats of silence before he looked up again. "So this dragon law. Let me tell you what the IDDC has been doing and we'll see if there's a way we can work together on this." 

Charlie was fairly certain there had been an awkward moment in there, one that he maybe should have addressed, but now it was long gone and he wasn't even sure what it _was_ , so he let it go. 

"Yeah," he said. "Sure. Talk to me."

~*~*~

Teddy almost overslept. He and Charlie had stayed up until nearly sunrise talking about dragons and the proposed new law and all the things they were willing to do to keep it from happening. Teddy generally didn't stay up all hours of the night, but he had to admit there was something about _Charlie_ talking to him. He didn't want to go to bed now that he had Charlie's ear. There had been so many Christmases at the Burrow when Teddy would have given anything for Charlie to give him that much attention. 

When he arrived at the big hall for breakfast, he found that Charlie had already gone out to work in the sanctuary, and Teddy was on his own for the day. They had talked last night about Teddy staying, about him helping Charlie work to get this bill off the table, but they hadn't really discussed the logistics of what Teddy would do. After breakfast, he found a map of the sanctuary. He quickly conjured a quill and started jotting down notes about what he'd like to see first. 

There was a Chinese Fireball that was practically ancient and being treated for a myriad of maladies. Teddy thought that might be a good place to start. He remembered the _Daily Prophet_ article that announced the dragon's arrival at the sanctuary. He had sat on the couch with the paper and examined the photographs for hints of Charlie, though there were none to be found. 

He knew now it was because Charlie avoided getting in front of a camera as often as possible. Last night, Charlie had confessed that had been one of the reasons he'd declined to turn professional on the Quidditch pitch. He was starting to realize that Charlie's reluctance to engage him at Christmas had been less about Teddy and more about Charlie's disdain for the spotlight. 

That realization made something in Teddy's chest swell with warmth when he thought about how Charlie had chosen to spend the whole night talking to _him_. 

~*~*~

Charlie spent most of the morning hammering stakes into the ground on the west side of the sanctuary, laying out the boundary for the expanded Ridgeback enclosure. He glanced up and saw Teddy making his way to the pen where the blind, aging Fireball was convalescing. Charlie stopped where he stood, watching Teddy lean against the rail and examine the dragon.

"He's a little young, don't you think?" Annie was resting against the wooden post fence beside him, her eyes following Teddy. 

"Young for what?" Charlie said, and he picked up the mallet, turning away from the path that led to Teddy and sizing up the next row of stakes. 

Annie laughed. "You don't do innocent so well, Weasley," she said, and after a pause she added, "I guess he's older than the Malfoy kid was." 

Charlie shot a look at her over his shoulder. 

"That one wasn't your fault," she said. "He was acting out his daddy issues, obviously."

"How did you even--"

She tapped a finger to her ear. "Werewolf hearing. You keep forgetting about that. Silencing charms are your friend." 

Charlie rubbed a hand over his face and shook his head. "Shite." 

"Don't worry," said Annie. "That's honestly one of the least offensive things I've accidentally overheard around here. But we're not talking about Scorpion Malfoy right now."

"Scorp _ius_ ," Charlie corrected, kneeling down over one of the stakes and pounding it into the ground. 

"Right. Him. We're talking about Teddy Lupin and the way you've been eye stalking him all morning." 

"I'm not eye stalking him, Annie. Kid's practically family." 

"So you see him once a year on Christmas and take off before dessert and that's it? Not buying it." 

Charlie sat back on his heels. "His dad was a werewolf, you know. And a war hero. His mum was one of my best friends. We went to the Yule ball together."

" _You_ went to a dance?" Annie said, grinning. "On purpose and everything? Wish I hadn't missed that." 

"You weren't even born yet," Charlie said. "And yeah, I did. The only person less likely to be there than me was Tonks. That's why we went together. I think she had a crush on Remus even then."

"Remus Lupin," Annie said, shaking her head. "Of course. How did I not put that one together? But wasn't he--"

"A lot older than her? Yeah," Charlie said. He saw her open her mouth to respond and cut her off before she could speak. "Shut up. This discussion's off the table, yeah? I've got too many other things to worry about right now."

She pushed off the fence and sighed. "Off the table for now," she said. "We'll talk again later." And she started to walk away.

"No we won't," said Charlie. "Annie, I'm serious. We're done with this." 

"Just finish up your work," Annie called back over her shoulder. "Lovegood and Scamander are coming this afternoon for that interview and you need a shower first. I'll go shore up the fencing wards in case they bring those twins of theirs again."

Charlie watched her walk away and snorted. "Thought I was supposed to be in charge around here," he shouted after her.

~*~*~

"As we've already told you, Ms. Lovegood, there is no evidence to back up the claim that this anti-dragon law is a vast vampire conspiracy." Annie's voice was full of a sugary venom and Charlie was snickering softly beside Teddy.

Charlie had promised Annie that he'd take point on this one, and he hadn't wanted Teddy around at all, but Lovegood and Scamander had insisted on both Annie and Teddy being present. Teddy wasn't sure what Charlie meant when he'd said it was going to be a grueling afternoon, but twenty minutes into the interview, it felt like a nonsensical hour had passed. The questions they were asking had no coherence, and half the time Teddy felt as though they were speaking a different language all together. It was at once fascinating and baffling.

"So you're admitting there _is_ a vampire conspiracy?" asked Lovegood. 

"No," said Annie, sharply. 

"Uh, what Annie's trying to say is that we don't have much to do with vampires here at the sanctuary. We can't possibly comment on what they're doing or not doing right now," Charlie said.

"Got it," Luna said, and she started writing furiously with her quill. 

"Uh, Luna?" said Charlie. "What are you--"

"So, Mr. Lupin," said Scamander, cutting Charlie off abruptly, "when you stuck yourself to the front gates of this sanctuary, it had nothing to do with the vampires. That's what you're telling us?"

"Um, vampires?" Teddy looked from Charlie, who was frowning at Scamander, to Annie, who was leaning back in her chair and rolling her eyes. "No. I don't know anything about vampires." 

"Got it," Luna said again. 

"Got what?" said Annie. 

"Our story," said Luna, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Thank you so much. Come, Rolf. We have so much to tell the boys. It's exactly like they said it would be."

Scamander rose to his feet beside her and bowed deeply. "Thank you for your time, Charlie. Annie. Teddy." He turned to Luna, formally offering his arm, then escorted her from the office.

Annie ran a hand over her face. "Merlin only knows what they're going to print this time," she said. "It could be worse than that 'Six Secret Types of Endangered Dragons' piece that got those poachers all riled up. I'm going to make sure they get out of the sanctuary without talking to any of the interns."

"Thanks," said Charlie, and he stood up from his desk, walking around to lean against the front of it and cross his arms over his chest. He was so close to Teddy now that Teddy could feel the heat from his body, and it made him swallow hard. Was he in trouble?

The door closed behind Annie. "I'm sorry if I said something that was… Well, I don't know what I said. I don't even know how she knew I was here," said Teddy.

"Don't worry about it," Charlie said. "I gave up a long time ago trying to figure out why Luna knows what she knows. She's only right about ten percent of the time, but I'll be honest with you, it makes no sense _why_ she's right." He smiled then, and it was a smile that lit up his face. 

It was the kind of smile that made Teddy's cheeks feel warm and he looked away. "Alright," he said. "Thanks." 

Charlie pushed off the desk. "Thanks for showing up today. It was kind of nice having the reasonable folks outnumber the _Quibbler_ crew for once. Come on. I'm going to teach you how to shore up the Ridgeback paddock. We can't just talk politics all the time. There's work to be done, too."

Teddy glanced back up and Charlie, who was still grinning at him, and returned the smile. 

"I'd like that," he said, and he got to his feet. "Let's go." 

~*~*~

About the time Teddy took off his shirt in the heat of the mid-afternoon sun, Charlie realized this might not be the best idea. He was enjoying Teddy's company, so much that he was starting to question his own motives, and now Charlie felt an uncomfortable knot forming in his stomach. Teddy was Remus and Tonks's kid. Charlie shouldn't have been having these thoughts about him. Teddy looked back over his shoulder and flashed a smile and Charlie nodded, cursed under his breath, and got back to work. 

After a few hours had passed, Charlie found himself working on the other side of the small feed station from Teddy. He didn't hear the roar of fire, or the shouting right away. The telltale sign for Charlie was the sound of the dragon's feet skidding through the gravel near the fence. In his sleep he knew what a panicked dragon sounded like. That the howl of pain came from _Teddy_ was a fact that took him several long seconds to comprehend. 

By the time Charlie skidded around the building, there were two dragon keepers kneeling beside Teddy as he lay on his stomach in the grass. 

"Teddy? What happened?" he dropped to his knees between them. 

Teddy raised his head. "I'm an idiot," he said. 

With some relief, Charlie realized that the singe marks on the edge of Teddy's shirt were barely singed, and that the burns were just on the surface. He'd seen a lot of accidents in his time at the sanctuary, and he was always the one to maintain a cool head and keep the rest of the staff moving. Right now, though, his heart was pounding in his throat and everything seemed like it was happening from very far.

"It's okay, mate," he finally managed. "We've got you. We'll… We'll get you to my cabin and--"

"I'll take him," Annie said. Charlie had no idea when she'd arrived. He nodded. "And you get started on the paperwork," she added. 

Charlie looked at her for a long moment, the adrenaline finally giving way to recognition. "Thanks," he said. "Yeah. That'll be good. Is that okay, Teddy?"

He met Teddy's gaze and wished he hadn't, because the pang of disappointment Charlie felt at the thought of sending Teddy off with someone else was reflected there.

~*~*~

Annie had been kind enough to take Teddy back to Charlie's place and clean him up, but Teddy was feeling touchy about it. He didn't understand why Annie couldn't do the paperwork. Why Charlie couldn't take him back and work on his injuries. Now she was working with some herbal potion to treat the spotty burns covering his arm and back. And instead of feeling gratitude for her care, all Teddy could feel was a sense of discontent with his life, as if he were at a fork in the road and edging toward the wrong direction. 

"A couple of days and you'll be right as rain," she said. "Except for the shiny patches that won't go away."

"Like Charlie has," said Teddy.

"Exactly." Annie glanced up at him from the bowl she was stirring. "So stop looking so grim, would you? You're going to be fine."

"It's not… It's not that." Teddy shook his head and looked away. The feeling was intensifying. He didn't know how to right his world again. It had been a stupid mistake, getting himself between the fence and the dragon, and he'd known better. Was there anything he didn't fuck up?

"So what is it, then?" said Annie.

"I'm twenty-seven this year. And I'm only here as a, what, unpaid assistant? And that's just because I failed at being a protester." 

"I think we call them interns," Annie said dryly. 

"My biggest accomplishment is getting involved with a dark creatures rights organization that doesn't even make enough noise to get on a proper Ministry watch list."

"Why would you want to be on a Ministry watch list? Do you even know what that means?" The way Annie was looking at him now made Teddy feel uncomfortable.

"I know there was a time my parents were on one. They did something. They made names for themselves. I… I wanted to do that with this. For the cause." 

"Teddy, don't think that because I've been kind so far that I'm going to put up with any more whining out of you. I'm sorry about what happened to your folks. Especially your dad. Life is hard for werewolves. Trust me, I'm kind of an expert on marginalized groups. But you grew up pretty posh--that's the word you Brits use, isn't it? Something like that? Anyway, according to what Charlie said. I'm worried about this dragon bill because these dragons are my babies _and_ my livelihood. You're worried about it because you had the time and support to get to pick your causes." 

She finished soaking the towel in the herbal concoction and laid it on his arm. "It only stings for the first few minutes."

Teddy clenched his teeth and wrinkled his nose. It was more than a sting, but he didn't complain. He felt a flare of embarrassment that he'd been complaining to Annie at all. She was right. His parents may have died before he really met them, but he'd been okay. He'd practically grown up in _Harry Potter's_ house. He'd been so absorbed in these feelings--or whatever they were--for Charlie that he'd only been thinking of himself.

"I'm not usually this much of an arse," he said. "Or I guess maybe I am. I'm sorry." 

"Of course you're sorry," said Annie. She patted the towel on his arm and he winced. "Get some rest." 

She stood up and smiled at him. "I'll send Charlie in here later to look after you. You're probably going to have to stay here with him for a couple of days, and every four hours, take the bandages off to re-apply the potion and give it some air. Charlie knows how to do it. He's had more than experience with it." 

Teddy felt the warmth in his cheeks and looked away at the window. He could feel Annie's eyes on him in the doorway and didn't want to see the look on her face. He let his hair go dark brown and fall over his eyes.

"That sounds good," he said. 

"I'll bet it does," said Annie, and before he could reply she was gone.

~*~*~

"Hey, Perce," Charlie said over his shoulder, taking off his gloves and tossing them on a small table beneath the patio awning. 

"Charlie," Percy said, and he nodded and stepped forward. There was a tone Percy took with him, something just a shade beneath condescending, that always made Charlie feel like he wouldn't measure up to Percy's standards. It was silly, really, because Charlie had practically changed Percy's diapers. 

Still, Percy's intellect and his reputable career led Charlie to believe that maybe there was a little truth to that. 

"What can I do for you?" Charlie said. "I'm done for the day. I've got some beer at my place."

Percy held up a hand to stop him. "While I'm not here on Ministry business, it _is_ the middle of a Ministry work day and as such I'm going to have to turn down your offer. But thank you." 

He took a few steps closer to Charlie and lowered his voice. "I was hoping we could have a word. Privately."

"What?" Charlie looked around. There wasn't another dragon keeper in sight. "Alright, I guess. You want to cast a--" Before he'd even finished, Percy had waved his wand and put them in a bubble of silence. "So what's going on?" 

"First--and you did not get this information from a Ministry source, are we clear?--late this afternoon there will be a major announcement about the pending anti-dragon legislation. You may want to be present as a show of support."

"Today?" Charlie said. That didn't give them much time. He and Teddy had only just sent the letter in a few days ago. "That fast? Is that good or bad?"

"I'm not sure," said Percy. "I know they were moved to act quickly in response to the letter drafted by you and Mr Lupin, but I don't know in which direction. And before you take too much credit, you should know that it's been Granger who has kept the Wizengamot under unceasing pressure over this bill."

"I owe Hermione everything for this," said Charlie. "She's been working non-stop."

"Yes, well, don't count your dragons before they hatch. We don't know what the announcement will be." Percy was usually quick to end a conversation and hurry away from Charlie, but this time he hesitated. "And, er, there's one more thing, Charlie."

"Yeah?" Charlie said. "What's that?"

"You've been working with young Lupin on all this, yes? Well, that has caught the attention of… several of my colleagues. If you'll remember, many of your interns are related to Ministry employees. Rampant nepotism aside, however, you've apparently not been very… discreet in this instance."

"Discreet? Wait. There's nothing going on between me and Teddy," Charlie said. "Who told you there was?"

"People talk, Charlie, and a half naked young man coming in and out of your cabin at all hours is just grist for the gossip mill."

"It wasn't what it looked like," Charlie began. "He was hurt and--"

"I'd rather not hear the details, thank you. And it doesn't matter what actually happens. Perception, however, _is_ what matters. Mr Lupin has applied for a summer internship at the sanctuary. How do you think that will look on paper?" 

Charlie looked at his boots. He felt guilty even arguing the point with Percy. Nothing _had_ happened between them that night, not really. But Charlie had wanted it to. And that was the problem. 

"Understood," Charlie said. "And thanks for the heads up."

Percy nodded. He held his wand poised to remove the bubble, but first he said. "At least he's decently older than the Malfoy spawn."

"How the hell do you know about that?"

"His father and I share a first year clerk. Apparently in the boy's never ending quest to give his father apoplexy, he blurted it out for shock value in the midst of an argument."

Charlie snorted. "Fuck. Well… Sorry about that." 

Percy shrugged and released the bubble of silence. "He was of age, and not an employee, or prospective employee. It's none of my business." His lips twisted with just the smallest hint of amusement. "Good day, Charlie." 

"I'll see you later, Percy." 

When his brother was gone, Charlie ran a hand over his face. Whatever fantasy he was living in right now, it was going to have to come to an end. Percy was right, the Ministry would never accept Teddy's application if they thought he and Charlie were having a fling.

~*~*~

The Ministry hallways were crowded when they arrived, and at first Teddy thought everyone was there for the dragon law announcement. When Charlie grabbed his sleeve to lead him through the throngs of people, however, he realized that the halls were crowded with witches and wizards waiting for all kinds of announcements. They reached an area where crowds thinned out and Charlie pulled him over into an alcove.

"So, Teddy," Charlie seemed hesitant, his usual easy charm evaporated, "about those rumors going around--and please, don't pretend like you're too thick to have heard them--I think we should clear the air, yeah?"

Teddy felt himself draw a telling breath through his nose before he even realized what was happening. This was why he was terrible at wizard's poker, he thought. His tells were huge. 

"The rumors that you and I are… doing stuff?" he said.

Charlie snorted. "Yeah, doing stuff. Those rumors. I wanted to talk to you about that. About the idea that I, uh, want to get in your pants, to put it plainly." 

"The way Scorpius tells it, you wouldn't be opposed," said Teddy quickly. 

"Jesus, does _everyone_ know about that?" Charlie said. He looked down and off to the side, and the embarrassed smile on his face made Teddy want to touch his cheek more than anything.

"You're a bit of a legend by reputation," said Teddy, feeling a little bolder now. "I can't blame him for wanting bragging rights."

Teddy wondered if Charlie's mouth was as dry as his was. He wondered if Charlie felt the same kind of tension coiling in his gut. He thought about a thousand Christmases at the Burrow and how Charlie's brilliant smile always lit the room more brightly than the twinkling lights on the tree. He thought about the way sun and sweat had glistened over Charlie's freckled shoulders the day of the dragon accident. 

And then he wanted to kick himself for all those thoughts because they'd taken up _time_ , time that he could have been using to touch Charlie because he was almost certain by now that Charlie would want to touch him back. But now Annie was standing in front of them, her eyes wide with excitement. 

"The Wizengamot is about to rule," she said. "Hurry." She rushed off down the hallway. 

Charlie grabbed Teddy's arm and pulled him along and it felt like Teddy's legs were made of lead, because the only thing he could get his brain to focus on was the unbearably hot spot on his skin where Charlie was touching him. Then they reached the crowd gathered in the atrium and Charlie let go. 

Teddy felt like he'd just lost his anchor, and he stumbled, pitching into the crowd as they pressed back, away from the big doors at the front of the atrium that were opening. Charlie was next to him again in a moment, guiding him through the mass of bodies with all the ease of a world class Seeker on the Quidditch pitch. Percy Weasley appeared in the doorway just as they reached the front of the crowd and he looked in their direction. There was a moment in which Percy and Charlie exchanged glances, and Teddy felt like he was missing something, but then Percy started talking and it was gone.

Teddy's head was spinning with a million and one thoughts and he almost didn't hear the announcement. He _definitely_ heard the cheer that rang through the crowd as soon as it was done, though, and the next thing he knew, his face was buried in Annie's hair as she flung her arms around him and announced, "We won!" 

He struggled to see over her shoulder, his gaze finally landing on Charlie, grinning as he talked animatedly to Hermione across the hall. He felt in that moment as if there were a thousand people between him and Charlie. And maybe there always had been. Annie was still hugging him, so Teddy braced his arms around her waist, lifted her up, and spun her around. 

This was a victory. It was what he'd set out to do. He had to remember that.

~*~*~

Teddy was throwing things into his duffel bag when Charlie reached the doorway, and Charlie leaned against the wall, watching for a quiet moment.

“So you’re taking off, then?” he said. “Thought you’d applied for an internship.”

Teddy looked up. “I, uh, withdrew it.”

Charlie pushed off the wall and walked a little closer to the bed. “You did,” he said. “Teddy, look, I know things got weird but don’t give up on this. If you want it."

"Wasn't the internship that I wanted," Teddy said. 

Charlie felt that knotting in his stomach again, the kind he only felt around Teddy.

"Teddy," he began, but he didn't know where to go with it. What was he going to ask? That Teddy stay there at the sanctuary with him? That was ridiculous. 

"I _know_ ," Teddy said, and he closed the bag and hoisted it over his shoulder. "I already know, Charlie. Don't embarrass me anymore than I already am." 

Charlie stepped into the doorway then. He wasn't quite sure why he was doing it, or what he thought was coming of this, but he knew that if he let Teddy walk out of this room, leave the sanctuary, he was going to regret it. 

"I'm not trying to embarrass you, Teddy. I'm just trying to… I don't know what I want to ask for. But I know what I don't want. I don't want you to walk out this door right now." 

"You don't?" 

Charlie looked at Teddy, who was watching him wide-eyed, the hand holding onto his duffel bag trembling, and he couldn't stand the distance anymore. In two swift steps, he had Teddy's face cradled in his hands. 

And then Charlie was kissing him and Teddy's bag dropped to the ground and the whole world was Teddy's arms wrapped tightly around Charlie's shoulders. 

~*~*~

Teddy didn't remember getting naked with Charlie, because all he could think about was Charlie's kisses. Charlie was an amazing kisser. But there they were, naked on the bed, Charlie on top of him, his warm, strong body grinding against Teddy's, and Teddy wrapping a leg around Charlie's thigh to anchor himself. 

He heard his name on Charlie's lips and he shivered all over. Charlie's hands were roughly calloused and they lit Teddy on fire wherever they touched him. Teddy felt that he could barely keep up. If Charlie's mouth felt incredible on his, it was nothing to the way Charlie's mouth felt on his throat, or the insistent hardness of Charlie's cock against the juncture of his hip. 

Teddy angled himself just a little bit, his erection rubbing against Charlie's, and the growl that came from low in Charlie's chest nearly undid him right there. He could feel the smooth, scarred places on Charlie's body where he'd been burnt by flames, and he wondered if his own burns felt the same under Charlie's splayed fingers on his back. 

"This isn't Scorpius," Charlie murmured, and Teddy was jerked back into the present moment by Charlie's words. "I don't want you like that. This is _different_." 

"Different," Teddy agreed, and his brain couldn't seem to find more words than that. 

Words, it turned out, didn't really matter in that moment, because suddenly, Charlie was wrapped around him so completely that Teddy felt as though Charlie's presence would swallow him right up. And the next thing he knew, Charlie's breath was hot on his ear and Charlie was coming all over Teddy's hip and stomach and Teddy was coming too. 

He thought maybe he'd cried out Charlie's name, or just some incoherent words, but whatever it was, by the time they'd finished, the back of his throat was raw and scratchy. There was a warm glow on everything, and Teddy's entire body was melting into the mattress. He started to speak, but then Charlie's lips were pressing against his, hard, and Teddy lost his senses all over again. 

When enough time had passed that Teddy's breath had grown steady and slower, and Charlie had rolled onto his back to stretch out, Teddy found words again. 

"Where's this going to go?" he asked. 

"Dunno," said Charlie. "Is that a problem for you?" 

"No. I just…"

"You can't apply for that internship again. Not now. I get it." 

"IDDC has a chapter in Bucharest," Teddy said. "It's not very big, and I'd be making almost nothing, but… It's close." 

"If that's what you want to do, you should do it," Charlie said, and he hesitated for a beat before adding, "It would be nice. Having you close."

Teddy couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face. "Annie's not going to like it." 

"No," Charlie said with a chuckle. "She's not. I'll never hear the end of it."

"Unless we get her distracted."

"What have you got in mind?" 

"Not what," said Teddy. "Who." 

"You want to fix Annie up?" Charlie said, wrapping an arm around Teddy's waist and pulling  
himself in close. Charlie's skin was warm as if it were generating its own heat. As if he were made of dragon fire on the inside. "Do you have any idea how many hexes she knows? Because if you think an angry Hermione is something, just try getting on Annie's bad side." 

"Then she'd be a good match for Roxy," said Teddy.

"Roxy? Wait. George's Roxanne?" 

"The one and only." 

Charlie was quiet for a long moment. "That's… kind of brilliant, Teddy," he said finally. 

Teddy grinned, and buried his face against Charlie's shoulder. "I'm full of brilliant ideas," he said. "Just you wait."

{END}

**Author's Note:**

> This work is part of the 2018 HP Next Gen Fest. The creator will be revealed on November 30.


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